Mind Your Major

When I hear the word scribe, I picture someone in ancient times writing on parchment, with an inkwell by his side.  Imagine my surprise when I was invited to a meeting this semester about scribe jobs for students!  With the same intent, but a modern twist, scribes are changing the way emergency medicine is practiced all across the country.

Scribes are hired and trained to provide medical charting for physicians.  This frees up the physician to focus on the patient, rather than getting bogged down with documentation.  The physician reviews the scribe’s work before approving it.  Not only do scribes help increase the efficiency of emergency departments, but scribes gain valuable experience in preparation for application to medical school.  Medical schools expect that a student has spent many hours observing in a medical setting.  Working as a scribe offers the added benefits of learning medical terminology and getting paid.  PhysAssist Scribes, Scribe America, and Emergency Medicine Scribe Systems are three companies currently hiring pre-healthcare students for scribe positions.  Even more organizations can be found by doing an online search.  Some students are able to scribe as a summer job.  Visit the company websites for more details.

*Update:  Toby Mulligan, Chief Executive Officer of ProScribe, called our office to let us know that ProScribe hires and trains scribes for the Waco market.  Click here for more details.